Hi,

I'm looking to find a replacement for my existing router Buffalo WHR-HP-G54 with DD-WRT). I want to move to 802.11n and a gigabit lan, but most of the hardware that meets those requirements doesn't have great DD-WRT support. I stumbled across Routerboard and RouterOS and I think I'd like to make the move to this platform. The configuration of RouterOS is a little more in depth than I'm accustomed to, but I'm a A+ tech who builds my own computers, (I'm working on my Network+); so I figure it would be a good learning opportunity to use something other than DD-WRT or stock router firmware. Here's what I need some help with:

Where to buy - I see a few places like roc-noc.com that will put together the box for me for a small fee. I wouldn't mind paying $10 to $20 for someone experienced to piece it together for me, so that's a plus.

I have a budget of $200 - If I have to buy a separate gigabit switch, though, that's no big deal.

I want to get 802.11n and gigabit - I could buy a separate gigabit switch, so if the box doesn't have more than 2 or 3 ports, that's not an issue. I'm not sure what to look for in a good 802.11 n radio, so any advice is appreciated.

Antennae? - I just want to be able to connect from my neighbor's house, but not necessarily the whole neighborhood.

My setup is as follows: ISP > DHCP cable modem > (ROUTER) > Lan (I only mention that because it looks like some folks on this forum run ISPs and I don't plan on doing that.

Any advice you could offer would be very appreciated.

Thanks!

I think the RB433 is what I'm looking for. Could anyone tell me what mini pci card and antenna formation I should go with for my needs? I'd like to be able to hit my neighbors on either side of me, beyond that, I don't need coverage.

why don't you use your old computer and buy a licens of ROS level 4?

you can use any atheros based pci wireless card and any realtek chipset ethernet card ... how many you want in any configuration ...

you said you can make your own computer ... so how hard that can be????

let us know your home made server done

I think the RB433 is what I'm looking for. Could anyone tell me what mini pci card and antenna formation I should go with for my needs? I'd like to be able to hit my neighbors on either side of me, beyond that, I don't need coverage.

The miniPCI cards only differ by their output power, and supported 802.11 technologies. You need N, and you probably will want to use also regular laptops (2GHz only) so that leaves only R52Hn, R52N, R52nM.

The difference is that H models have higher output power, and the M model has MMCX connectors instead of uFL. Depends on what antenna you will use.

why don't you use your old computer and buy a licens of ROS level 4?

you can use any atheros based pci wireless card and any realtek chipset ethernet card ... how many you want in any configuration ...

you said you can make your own computer ... so how hard that can be????

let us know your home made server done

Thanks for the advice. After thinking the PC option over, there's a couple of things that are keeping me from going that route:

Larger power consumption, size of the enclosure, lack of hardware to spare for the project right now. Besides, that routerboard enclosure will look and fit better where I'm going to put it.

The miniPCI cards only differ by their output power, and supported 802.11 technologies. You need N, and you probably will want to use also regular laptops (2GHz only) so that leaves only R52Hn, R52N, R52nM.

The difference is that H models have higher output power, and the M model has MMCX connectors instead of uFL. Depends on what antenna you will use.

Thanks for the tip on the wireless cards. Is there a clear advantage to using one, two, or three antennae? I know that with at least two antennae, one can transmit and the other can receive, but can any of those cards take advantage of three? If I'm buying everything at once, should I go with MMCX or uFL connectors (is there pros/cons to using either of them)? I was also planning on going with the 5dbi antennae unless anyone here has a reason I shouldn't.

EDIT: After a little research, it looks like MMCX connectors might be a little sturdier and last longer than uFL connectors. Is that the main difference between them?

Thanks!